Sunday, 28 April 2013

Back for part two of my epic empties post! This is all the skincare/body care products that I've gone through recently. Wow-wee, there's a lot of recycling here.

Herbal Essences Hello Hydration shampoo/conditioner - I really like the tropical coconut scent of this duo. Does what it says on the package and to that end, I've already repurchased. Plus, The Boy seems to like it too!

Bath and Body Works 'Cozy Autumn Vanilla' shower gel - Love the scent of this too. Will repurchase when back in the States. 5 months and counting...

Rituals Organic Rice Milk & Cherry Blossom foaming shower gel - Got this from the Parental Units at Christmas. Enjoyed how nice this made my skin feel. No tightness or scratchy feeling. The Boy seemed to keep nicking it too!

L'Occitane Lavender liquid soap - Enjoyed this but did get bored of the scent after a while. I use this as a hand wash and think prefer the Sweet Almond version. Still it was nice and I'd repurchase - just not this scent.

Philosophy 'Gingerbread Girl' 3 in 1 shower gel - loved the scent. Less fussed on the shimmer within the product. Only good thing was that it didn't transfer onto my skin, but it did hang around in the bath, even after a good scrub. Same a previously noted - I love Philosophy!

The Sanctuary 'Ultimate Facial Cleansing oil' - Did not like this at all. I didn't think there was anything ultimate about it! I felt like it smeared make up all over my skin, instead of removing it. And even though it emulsified into a milky consistency, I never really felt like it had all gone. Glad to see the back of this and I wont be repurchasing.

Caudalie 'Eau de Beaute' - Obviously this has cult status within the beauty community, but I wasn't really sure what all the fuss was about. I used it as a toner after cleansing. It does have a really lovely herbal scent and felt very refreshing - but did it do anything major to my skin? No, I don't think so. Nice enough, but I won't be in a rush to repurchase.

Botanics Intensive Moisture Mask - Not a fan. Didn't think it was very hydrating and (for me) it has a weird smell. Won't repurchase.

Botanics Radiant Youth microdermabrasion polish - This has taken over the No7 microdermabrasion polish as my new favourite scrub. I love this and its much cheaper than the No7 version. Have already repurchased as its a 1/3 off in Boots at the moment.

Elemis Frangipani Monoi Melt - Gorgeous! I absolutely love this. I know Nic isn't fussed on the scent, but I think its divine. I have another mini bottle to use, then I'll repurchase.

Tara Smith Big Baby gentle shampoo - used this as a brush cleaner. Worked fine, although I'm not sure I'll repurchase.

Givenchy Ange ou Demon bath gel - You know I love the perfume, so clearly I love the scent. Seemed to do the job, but as you know I wouldn't purchase this as a stand alone shower gel. I'll no doubt get more when I get my post Christmas perfume purchases.

Mamma Mio - O*Mega body buff - I'm afraid I didn't rate this at all. It wasn't scrubby enough for me as a scrub and I didn't care for the scent. Wont repurchase.

I want to know what you've used up recently? Any fab finds or flops? Do share. I'm already well on my way to another epic empties post. I'm getting good at this!

Sunday, 7 April 2013

I did mention this was EPIC, right? I've been ploughing though my goodies for the last few months and here are the results. I think I've done pretty well, but there is still a way to go. This is going to be a fairly massive post, so get yourselves comfy. We're going in for part one...

Givenchy Ange ou Demon - I love this perfume and I've already blogged about it here Gorgeous. I have another bottle to use, but think this one will always be in my collection.

Givenchy Play - got this a while back whist seeking out the Play Intense version. Nice enough but not really me. I don't think I'll repurchase this one.

Calvin Klein Euphoria - Another long standing love. Have another bottle ready to use and will repurchase when I need to.

YSL Top Secret pro remover - came in a YSL freebie. Really good eye make up remover. I'm glad I tried it, but I don't think I'd buy it as its fairly expensive and I'm not sure it works better the the cheaper versions. Still, nice to give it a whirl.

Origins make a difference + treatment - Loved this! It was really light and hydrating. When I run out of moisturiser, will purchase the full size.

Revlon ColorStay - Long time love. Have a back up and when its gone, I'll repurchase for sure!

Espa Skin Radiance Moisturiser - This was a nice dewy moisturiser and it smelt amazing. I took this away to Berlin with me, as it was a super handy travel size. I don't think I'd purchase the full size though.

B&BW Sleep Night Time Tea lotion - This was really lovely, very moisturising and a great calming scent. Will buy the large one when I'm back in the States in September.

Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill - Really don't know what the fuss was about this, I'm really not a fan! Its a very wet mascara with a standard brush. Can't say that I noticed anything amazing for my lashes. Won't buy the full size.

BareMinerals Flawless Definition Volumizing - And yet another Sephora Lash Stash mascara. Not a fan of this one either. Didn't find it particularly voluminous. Prefer the original Flawless Definition. Won't repurchase.

Rimmel 1000 kisses tint balm 110 stay very berry - Not a fan. Nice original stain, but wore off in a patchy mess. Won't repurchase.

Max Factor Lipfinity lasting lip tints in 03 (pink) 04 (nude) - Again, these we nice on initial application too, but wore off in a strange pattern, leaving a crazy pigmented lip line (reminiscent of a drag queen) No thanks! They dried up really quickly too. Won't repurchase.

No7 pink lip balm/gloss - Think this was intended to compete with the Clarins Lip Perfectors. I haven't tried them, so I can't comment other than to say that this was okay. Nothing major to say about it really. Think it was a limited edition, although I don't think I'd repurchase even if it was still available.

Tuesday, 2 April 2013

Thursday 4th April - Confessions of a Beauty Addict (Oh, I think I might enjoy this show!)

Sunday 7th April - bareMinerals

Wednesday 10th April - Lulu's Time Bomb

Wednesday 17th April - Beauty Tools featuring Clarisonic

Sunday 28th April - Mally Beauty

Happy Shopping!!!

PS - Just saw some exciting news from the BritishBeautyBlogger (which I read obsessively!) that QVCUK will begin selling Josie Marran soon. Read the full post here. Excited is an understatement! Now, If I can get Tarte and LORAC from QVCUK, I'll be in heaven...

There’s nothing like stress to play havoc with your skin! My skin is generally on the border of being badly behaved. It nudges across that border, usually about the time of the month (FUN!), but generally my combination skin is fairly well managed – apart from bouts of stress!

I decided to give the Vichy Normaderm 3 in 1 Cleanser * (Currently a bargainous £9.35 for 125ml from Escentual.com) when my skin had made a bid for the border (stress, stress and more stress!)... and I have to say I love it.

As the name would suggest, its a multi-use product. It can be used as a cleanser, scrub or mask for oily/combination skin. As I had it in a 50ml sample size, I decided this would be the perfect product to throw in my travel bag. So when we headed off to Berlin at the start of January for The Boy's 30th birthday celebrations - Nomaderm 3 in 1 came along too.

They say:Regulate your complexion with the Vichy Normaderm 3 in 1 Cleanser, Scrub and Mask, an all-in-one solution for oily skin. When skin produces too much oil and becomes overburdened, clogged and imperfection-prone, it needs gentle care to make it feel fresh and comfortable again. The Normaderm 3-in-1 combined cleanse, scrub and mask action is made up of ultra soothing agents and deeply clarifying clay, making it perfect for even sensitive complexions. The Normaderm cleansing cream reduces the appearance of imperfections, clears impurities and eliminates excess sebum. Lather onto your damp face and then rinse off with plenty of water. Alternatively, use the cream as a daily scrub to unclog pores, and make the texture of the skin more uniform. Lather up and rinse away thoroughly. To use as a mask, apply in a thick layer and leave on for 5 minutes. Rinse away thoroughly for a matte and clear complexion, making sure to avoid the eye contour

So how have I used it? As I mentioned, due to the mini nature of the tester, I took it to Berlin with me as my sole cleanser/scrub/mask. As it is such a multi-purpose product, I was able to cut down on unnecessary crap that had to be carried in my hand luggage (cheers Ryanair!!) and focus my space resource on the mounds of nail varnish I brought back with me - don't ask! It was messy... Now I'm back home and I treated myself to the big 125ml bottle, I enjoy using it more as a mask. In my opinion, its not a hardcore treatment mask, like Origins Clear Improvement or Out of Trouble - but a kind of daily maintenance mask. Of course, that's just me and my skin. You may think this is enough for you to use once or twice a week and that's fine too. But for me, I use it a couple of times a week, just to keep everything in check. Come the weekend, it's time to bring out the big guns. You don't need a lot of this product. 50ml has lasted me about 3 months using it mainly as a mask (you'll see it feature in an upcoming empties post soon, because I'm all out) a few times a week. Obviously, if you use this as your daily cleanser, you'll go through it a bit quicker. For me personally, its not 'scrubby' enough to use as a facial scrub.If this sounds like something you'd be interested in, hop (its still sort of Easter - geddit? Oh never mind!) over to Escentual.com You may even be able to find the infamous Bioderma in stock. AMAZING! Check them out here*Product was kindly sent to me as a sample by Escentual.com However, I loved it so much, bought myself the big bottle!